{"podcast":{"title":"Australian Investors Podcast","slug":"australian-investors-podcast-594967","podcast_index_feed_id":594967,"rss_url":"https://feeds.megaphone.fm/RRKKR9032877039","website_url":"https://www.raskmedia.com.au/podcasts/australian-investors-podcast/","image_url":"https://megaphone.imgix.net/podcasts/9272aa06-1181-11ed-be4c-83a70e645621/image/b145aa5c5b3a555f41d51f1799ce7969.png?ixlib=rails-4.3.1&max-w=3000&max-h=3000&fit=crop&auto=format,compress","author":"Rask","episode_count":707,"summary":"The Australian Investors Podcast is a twice weekly podcast (Wednesday & Saturday), featuring laid back but intelligent short- and long-form conversations about markets, business, psychology, lessons learned and investment process. At Rask, our goal is to bring you the best insights, information and proven strategies to help you invest your time and money. SHOW NOTES: https://www.raskmedia.com.au/podcasts/australian-investors-podcast","last_synced_at":"2026-06-15T02:18:03.109244+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/australian-investors-podcast-594967"},"episode":{"title":"How booking.com built a travel empire (and why Google can’t kill it yet)","slug":"how-booking-com-built-a-travel-empire-and-why-google-can-t-kill-it-yet","published_at":"2026-03-11T04:00:00+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/australian-investors-podcast-594967/how-booking-com-built-a-travel-empire-and-why-google-can-t-kill-it-yet","show_page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/australian-investors-podcast-594967","url":"https://www.raskmedia.com.au/2026/03/10/how-booking-com-…cant-kill-it-yet/","audio_url":"https://traffic.megaphone.fm/RRKKR2245579544.mp3?updated=1773273172","summary":"In this Booking Holdings Ltd deep dive, we sit down with Alan Pullen from Magellan Investment Partners to analyse the evolution of a travel giant. From its origins as Priceline.com during the dot-com era to its transformative acquisition of Booking.com, we explore how the company’s shift from an agency model to a merchant model has reshaped its financial profile. We break down the \"Connected Trip\" strategy and examine how the integration of brands like Agoda and OpenTable creates a powerful network effect that continues to dominate the fragmented European and global hotel markets. As investors look for long-term value, this analysis scrutinises the Booking Holdings moat in the face of rising competition. We address the critical question: Is Google or AI a legitimate threat to their market share, or will these technologies serve as enhancers for their data-driven ecosystem? Whether you are looking at management alignment, loyalty program efficacy, or the investment case for BKNG stock, this episode provides a comprehensive look at the risks and opportunities within the current economic environment. Alan Pullen is the co-portfolio manager for the Magellan Global Opportunities Fund (ASX:OPPT). Talking Points: - William Shatner’s regret: Being paid in Priceline stock - What hotel reservations used to look like and what happened to Wotif? - The start of Booking Holdings’ life as Priceline in 1997 - Priceline lists on the Nasdaq in 1999, just before the dot-com crash - How did Priceline fare during the dot-com crash? - Surviving the crash and acquiring a small Dutch business called Booking.com - Booking.com’s original agency business model vs. the merchant model - How the agency model accelerated Booking’s success and disrupted incumbents - Booking’s network effect and the f…","meta_description":"In this Booking Holdings Ltd deep dive, we sit down with Alan Pullen from Magellan Investment Partners to analyse the evolution of a travel giant. From it…","key_points":[],"chapters":[],"topics":[],"duration_seconds":3300,"processing_state":"not_requested","actions":[{"name":"request_transcript","method":"POST","url":"https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/australian-investors-podcast-594967/episodes/how-booking-com-built-a-travel-empire-and-why-google-can-t-kill-it-yet/transcription-requests","description":"Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode."},{"name":"read_markdown","method":"GET","url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/australian-investors-podcast-594967/how-booking-com-built-a-travel-empire-and-why-google-can-t-kill-it-yet.md","description":"Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource."}]}}